"Oi~"
"Whoa, holy-shit!"
The sudden voice startled Sukisu so badly that he threw the sack in his hands away. Fortunately, he reacted quickly and caught it without incident.
But once he got a clear look at the person ahead, he realized it was a child. Remembering how a bean-sized brat had just scared him, Sukisu felt his face burn. It was utterly humiliating. Then he quickly realized something. Wasn't this the brat he had seen earlier today? He recalled what Big Brother Jessica had told him that afternoon.
"Big Brother, I think I spotted Konoha's Jinchūriki during the day."
Jessica gave him a somewhat meaningful look before speaking indifferently.
"Not to lecture you, Sukisu, but how many times have I told you all to keep your feet on the ground? Keep your feet on the ground. I know you all want to earn merit, but you're too eager for quick results, Sukisu. The people of Konoha aren't idiots. How could they let something as dangerous as a Jinchūriki wander the streets freely? You definitely saw wrong."
Jessica's words left Sukisu unconvinced. That blond brat was far too much like their village's Jinchūriki. He trusted himself; there was no way he had been mistaken. He could never mistake that familiar feeling, that same loneliness their village's Jinchūriki had. It had let him identify Naruto at a glance. He trusted his instincts.
He hadn't expected an unexpected bonus tonight. He had gone out to abduct a little girl from the Hyuga Clan and actually run into Konoha's Jinchūriki. His luck was simply unmatched.
Sukisu's eyes shone as he looked at Naruto. If he abducted Konoha's Jinchūriki too, that would certainly be a great achievement.
"Hey, brat over there, stop looking around. You're the only one here. Yes, I'm talking to you. Come over to Uncle. Uncle has candy for you."
With that, Sukisu reached out with a merciless hand to grab Naruto without waiting for his answer. But just as he was about to touch him, Naruto suddenly vanished from before his eyes. When he looked up again, Naruto was already dozens of paces away.
Sukisu felt a sharp pain in his chest. Looking down, he found three silver needles sticking into it. As his body gradually went numb, he realized in horror that he had been poisoned.
"Damn it, when did you-what a vicious brat! You actually poisoned me!"
As the poison took effect, Sukisu weakly clutched his chest and passed out completely. Only then did Naruto calmly approach him and give him a few kicks as he lay on the ground.
"Oi~ Why are you sleeping here? Get up. No sleeping here."
Naruto had thought he could test his current strength, only to run into someone this weak. Since the guy had practically delivered himself to his doorstep, he might as well give him death by poison. After all, the system didn't just provide Ninjutsu. The ninja souls obtained after acquiring a ninja also contained some of that ninja's combat techniques and experience. That was the fundamental reason Naruto had dared to rescue Hinata alone at only five years old. After all, only his body was five; he wasn't actually five.
The commotion seemed to have woken Hinata. She cautiously crawled out of the sack, tears still glistening at the corners of her eyes as she woke. Rubbing her eyes, she saw a small figure watching her from a distance. Only after looking closely did she find him familiar, as though she had seen that figure somewhere before.
"Naruto-kun."
Hinata rubbed her eyes again, hardly believing what she saw. Naruto was kicking someone lying on the ground.
Seeing that Hinata was awake, Naruto hurried over.
"How are you, Hinata? You're not hurt, are you?"
The moment he finished speaking, Naruto felt a little troubled. He shouldn't have known Hinata at this point, so why did she know him? Fortunately, he didn't dwell on it. He hadn't transmigrated at birth, after all. Perhaps the two had known each other before he transmigrated.
Hinata shook her head to show she was fine.
"Naruto-kun, why are you here?"
Looking at the carefree little girl, Naruto smiled helplessly. Hinata was rather silly right now, and quite cute. He gestured with his chin toward Sukisu on the ground.
"There. That man abducted you. I saw him and came to rescue you. I've already taken care of him."
At Naruto's words, Hinata turned pale with fright. She was a child, after all. It was normal to be scared when something like this happened.
"Um, thank you for saving me, Naruto-kun. You're such a good person."
Naruto awkwardly rubbed his face. Did I just get handed the good-guy card? Forget it. Kids say the darnedest things.
Naruto waved his hand, dropping the subject. Looking at Hinata's dazed expression, he told her:
"Then how about we make a promise, Hinata? Will you keep a secret for me?"
"What secret, Naruto-kun?"
"If someone asks who saved you, just say you don't know. Can you do that, Hinata?"
Naruto spoke to Hinata in a pleading tone.
The sudden turn left Hinata stunned. Although she didn't understand what Naruto was talking about, he was asking her for a favor! Her cheeks slowly flushed until they resembled a ripe apple, and she answered in a tiny voice, "O... okay, Naruto-kun..."
"Then... then if I'm in danger next time, you have to save me again."
Naruto nearly fell over on the spot when he heard that. This little girl really dared to say anything. She was already thinking about next time.
Still, he affectionately patted Hinata's head.
"All right, all right. If you're in danger next time, I'll come save you."
Naruto estimated the time, settled Hinata somewhere safe, and quickly left.
Almost as soon as Naruto left, the brothers Hyuga Hiashi and Hizashi Hyuga arrived. Hiashi hurriedly picked up his daughter, who was still in the sack, before noticing Sukisu lying unconscious on the ground some distance away. He exchanged a glance with Hizashi, and both saw surprise in the other's eyes. This was bad. The sky had fallen.
The brothers Hiashi and Hizashi, who had rushed out of their home, saw Sukisu already lying unconscious on the ground and Hinata stuffed in a sack. Hiashi picked Hinata up and exchanged a glance with Hizashi, both seeing shock in the other's eyes.
"Brother, these Kumogakure ninja have gone too far! They actually dared to break into the Hyuga Clan's home in Konoha and abduct Lady Hinata. Shouldn't we..."
Before Hizashi could finish, Hiashi interrupted him.
"Hizashi, watch your words. I believe Lord Hokage will certainly give our Hyuga Clan an explanation."
Hearing his brother say that, Hizashi could only sigh helplessly. The Third Hokage was long past being the Shinobi Hero who had once towered over all his rivals. Now he was merely a decrepit old man clinging to life and fearing death. Yet, unfortunately, his brother still harbored hopes for this weakling.
Things unfolded just as Hizashi Hyuga had expected. When the Hyuga brothers arrived at the Hokage's office, Kumogakure's delegation was already waiting for them. The man leading them was furious, pointing right at Hiruzen Sarutobi's nose as he demanded:
"Why did our Kumogakure envoy die near your Konoha's Hyuga Clan? You're deliberately murdering us! I hope you can give us an explanation, Lord Hokage."
Jessica, who stood at the front, deliberately stressed the final word, "explanation." He stared at Hiruzen Sarutobi with hostile eyes, in which there was even a trace of cunning.
Before Hiruzen Sarutobi could speak, Hizashi Hyuga, standing nearby, could no longer bear it. His expression darkened as he challenged Jessica of Kumogakure.
"Heh, give you an explanation? We Hyuga want an explanation from you! Yesterday, our Hyuga Clan's young lady was abducted by one of you Kumogakure bastards. Now you have the nerve to play the victim and demand an explanation from us!"
Hearing Hyuga Hiashi's words, Jessica laughed instead of getting angry. The purpose of their mission was to obtain the precious Kekkei Genkai found here in Konoha. So what if Hiruzen Sarutobi understood what was happening? They wouldn't dare confront Kumogakure.
"Well, you've admitted it yourselves! Lord Hokage, we came to your Konoha with friendly intentions to engage in exchanges. We never expected your village's Hyuga Clan to dare ambush and kill one of our members. Do you know he was Lord Raikage's own younger brother? I won't ask whether you can give me justice, Lord Hokage. All I ask is a life for a life. Use this man's life to settle the debt."
Jessica pointed at Hyuga Hiashi, utterly disregarding Hiruzen Sarutobi and Hizashi Hyuga, who were both present.
Unable to endure it any longer, Hizashi Hyuga erupted.
"What a joke! You claim our Hyuga Clan attacked you? That man clearly-"
"Enough, Hizashi. Shut up. I believe our Lord Hokage will certainly give us a satisfactory outcome. Isn't that right, Lord Third?"
Hearing Hyuga Hiashi's words, Hiruzen Sarutobi said nothing and merely kept nodding.
Jessica, standing to the side, couldn't help sneering at that.
"Heh, I hope you'll think carefully before speaking, Lord Hokage. After all, you wouldn't want to go to war with Kumogakure, would you?"
At Jessica's threatening words, Hiruzen Sarutobi loosened his clenched hands again. He even forced a smile uglier than a grimace.
"Ah, rest assured. I will certainly give Kumogakure a satisfactory answer."
Having heard what they wanted, Jessica and his companions didn't linger, afraid they might get beaten if they stayed any longer. They left with the rest of Kumogakure's people. This time, they had won a complete victory.
The members of the delegation looked at the valiant Jessica. No wonder he could be their leader. Just look at that incredible silver tongue. A few words were enough to leave a village's Kage humiliated.
"Big Brother, are we really going to war with Konoha?"
Hearing his subordinate ask such a brainless question, Jessica was so angry that he slapped him.
"Idiot! Of course we won't fight. Don't you know what state our village is in right now? We were just scaring that old man. Konoha is a cradle of geniuses. If we really push them too far, even we might not be able to handle it."
The subordinate nodded with only a vague understanding.
The thought of the geniuses Konoha had once produced made Jessica shudder, but he quickly suppressed it. What a joke. Those fellows were long dead. At that thought, his spirits soared. Seriously, I feared you when you were alive, but now that you're all dead, what the hell is there to fear?
Having worked that out, Jessica even puffed out his chest as he walked. Seeing their big brother act so arrogantly, the subordinates behind him all copied him. The group returned to their lodgings like victorious roosters.
Only after the Kumogakure ninja left did Hiruzen Sarutobi sigh and say to the Hyuga brothers, "I'm truly sorry, Hiashi. You know the village's current situation. We really cannot endure another war... I hope that, for the village, you can..."
Hiruzen Sarutobi stopped there. His meaning was already clear: he wanted them to sacrifice themselves for the village.
Both Hyuga Hiashi and Hizashi Hyuga were rather dumbfounded. They had thought their Lord Hokage would at least spare some consideration for their Hyuga Clan. Even if their clan had earned no merit over all these years, they had still toiled hard. They had never expected this outcome.
They could both see confusion, anger, and other complicated emotions in each other's eyes.
That look seemed to say, Big Brother, isn't our Hyuga Clan one of Konoha's great clans? Why are we treated so poorly?
Hiashi was also rather bewildered, completely unable to understand what Hiruzen Sarutobi was doing. But just because Hiashi couldn't understand didn't mean Hizashi couldn't. He instantly understood what Hiruzen Sarutobi intended: he wanted the Hyuga Clan to take the bullet for Konoha. Once Hizashi Hyuga understood, he exploded.
"Fine, fine, fine! Wonderful, absolutely wonderful! I, Hyuga Hiashi, truly never expected you, the Third Hokage, to be this kind of man!"
Hiashi was utterly furious, but Hiruzen Sarutobi continued to turn a deaf ear to his complaints.
"Enough. I'm tired. I want to rest."
Helpless, the Hyuga brothers could only withdraw. As he left, Hizashi fiercely glared at the seated Hiruzen Sarutobi. This was their Lord Hokage. Both of them had now seen his true colors: timid toward outsiders, heavy-handed toward his own. Such a man was utterly unworthy of his position.
Not long afterward, word spread through Konoha that Hizashi had killed himself to save his elder brother, silencing the Kumogakure delegation. The latter were so delighted that they couldn't stop grinning, and even took Hiashi's corpse back to Kumogakure. Konoha's other clans also felt the grief of the fox mourning the rabbit's death, deeply worried that the same thing might one day happen to them.
When Naruto learned of all this, he too cursed that old bastard Hiruzen Sarutobi. How could he be such a coward? It was only because Naruto was still too weak. Otherwise, he would absolutely have gone and torn that old bastard's home apart.
For a time, a stifling atmosphere hung over all of Konoha.